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Crime

Cocaine courier caught with £15,000 haul in Pembroke Dock

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Defendant transported high-purity drugs from Cardiff to Pembrokeshire for £210

A PEMBROKESHIRE man caught transporting more than £15,000 of high-purity cocaine through Pembroke Dock town centre has been jailed for three years.

Police received intelligence on April 4 that a vehicle was expected to be bringing drugs into Pembrokeshire.

Just after 3:30pm, officers spotted the vehicle travelling west on the A477. It was later stopped in Dimond Street, Pembroke Dock, where Zamurd Hussain, aged 43, was found to be the sole occupant.

Inside the vehicle, officers discovered a clear plastic bag containing 123 grams of cocaine.

Sian Cutter KC, prosecuting, told Swansea Crown Court on Wednesday that Hussain had travelled to Cardiff earlier that morning and stayed for just one hour before returning west.

“He told the officers he had gone to collect the drugs in order to make some money,” she said.

The court heard Hussain was paid £210.15 to act as a courier, transporting the cocaine from a Cardiff dealer to Pembroke Dock.

Ms Cutter said the drugs, which had a street value of just over £15,000, were not for Hussain’s personal use and that his role was to move them on behalf of others.

When officers asked to see his mobile phone, Hussain shouted at a member of the public to take it from him. When police eventually seized the phone, he refused to provide the PIN.

Ms Cutter said Hussain had 17 previous convictions, including two drug-related offences for possession with intent to supply.

Hussain appeared before the court by video link from HMP Swansea, where he has been held on remand.

Defending, Hannah George KC said Hussain had suffered from a serious drug addiction for many years.

“He started smoking cannabis as a teenager and has had substance abuse issues for a considerable time,” she said.

“His use of cocaine worsened in 2020, which resulted in his previous conviction for possession with intent to supply.

“But since he has been on remand, he has used his time productively by completing numerous courses in relation to cannabis and drug misuse.”

Ms George said Hussain was eager to return to employment after serving his prison sentence and hoped to find work in the construction industry.

“He is supported by family members who will do all they can to help him remain on the right path once he is released,” she added.

Sentencing Hussain to three years in custody, Judge Huw Rees said: “It is startlingly obvious that drugs have been your downfall.”

The court heard that Hussain was a “drug addict” also made a forfeiture and destruction order for the cocaine found in Hussain’s vehicle and for his mobile phone.

However, he allowed Hussain to retrieve personal, non-contentious items from the phone, including photographs of his family.

 

Crime

Kebab firm fined £500,000 after ‘lamb’ found to be mostly skin and fat

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A KEBAB manufacturer has been fined £500,000 after a court heard products sold as lamb contained little actual lamb and were instead made up largely of skin, fat and other meats.

Kismet Kebabs Ltd, based in Chelmsford, Essex, was sentenced at Swansea Crown Court after previously admitting fraud by false representation.

The court heard invoices showed products that “cannot be called meat as per the legal definition” were being used to produce kebabs

The company was also ordered to pay £259,298 in costs.

The case was brought following an investigation led by Swansea Council’s trading standards team, which found products supplied to takeaways and restaurants did not match the meat content declared on their labels.

The judge said the firm had engaged in “considerable dishonesty”

Prosecutor Lee Reynolds told the court the firm had misled wholesalers, retailers and customers over a prolonged period.

He said products described as lamb contained a mixture of fat, skin, goat, mutton, mechanically reclaimed meat and other lower-grade products.

In one example, a lamb doner labelled as containing 87% lamb was found to contain only 51% meat and 40% fat.

The investigation began after trading standards officers carried out sampling at kebab houses and restaurants in late 2020 and early 2021.

The company purchased a “large volume of fat” to put in its products

Further testing at wholesalers found major differences between what was stated on labels and what the products actually contained.

Officers later visited Kismet’s factory in Chelmsford, where concerns were raised about production, packaging and labelling.

The court heard invoices showed the firm was buying very little lamb, but large quantities of skin, fat, goat and other products.

Invoices showed products that “cannot be called meat as per the legal definition” were being used

Kismet’s barrister, Stuart Jessop, said the firm had operated successfully for many years and had since made significant changes. He said the company had “taken its eye off the ball” at the time of the offending, but argued that forcing it out of business would benefit nobody.

Judge Huw Rees said fraudulent activity had been “endemic” at the company and described the dishonesty as considerable and prolonged.

The company has been given four years to pay the fine and costs.

 

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Crime

Carmarthenshire man jailed for having lock knife

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Court told offence was committed during suspended sentence period

A CARMARTHENSHIRE man has been jailed after admitting possessing a lock knife in a public place.

David Jones, aged 61, of Cwmcatty, Porthyrhyd, appeared before Llanelli Magistrates’ Court on Friday (Jun 5).

He admitted that on June 4, at Llanelli, he had a lock knife with him in a public place without good reason or lawful authority.

Jones was jailed for four months.

The court record stated the offence was so serious that only custody could be justified, and that it was committed during the operational period of a suspended sentence.

The court also ordered that the lock knife be forfeited and deprived from him.

A second charge, alleging threatening or abusive behaviour towards PCSO Nicholl of Dyfed-Powys Police, was withdrawn.

 

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Crime

Milford Haven man admits harassment and assault

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Case adjourned for pre-sentence report at Haverfordwest court

A MILFORD HAVEN man has admitted harassment and assault charges.

Wayne Whatling, aged 40, of Howarth Close, Milford Haven, appeared before Llanelli Magistrates’ Court on Friday (Jun 5).

The court heard that between September 1 and September 13, 2025, at Milford Haven, Whatling pursued a course of conduct which amounted to harassment of Carol Whatling.

The charge stated that he regularly asked her for money and that she was in fear of repercussions if she did not provide it.

Whatling also admitted assaulting Ben Whatling by beating him at Milford Haven on September 13, 2025.

Magistrates adjourned the case for a pre-sentence report.

He was remanded on conditional bail and must return to Haverfordwest Magistrates’ Court on Thursday, June 11.

 

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